BlackRock suits replace Lambos and yachts in new bull-market crypto conference era

In February, Robert Mitchnick, BlackRock’s global crypto chief, took to the stage at the investment giant’s inaugural digital assets summit in New York.

There were no fluorescent Lamborghinis to be seen, and Mitchnik and BlackRock CEO Larry Fink did not host an extravagant yacht party.

Without the glitz, it was all rather un-crypto. But one thing that was present at BlackRock’s uber-corporate headquarters in Manhattan was pretty important — attendees representing vast sums of wealth.

As it happens, they are now showing up at conferences like this one as they turn their gaze to Bitcoin and its ilk.

The crypto confab is changing. With the advent of Bitcoin ETFs and interest from hedge fund titans such as Cliff Asness, crypto folk are going to have to make room for a cohort they may not have expected to break bread with — Wall Street.

Market dynamics

At BlackRock’s buttoned-down shindig, attendees were eager to plumb portfolio allocation, Bitcoin returns, and risk-reward ratios.

Speakers such as Dan Morehead, founder of Pantera Capital, and Brett Tejpaul, head of institutional sales, trading and services at Coinbase, shared the thinking on market dynamics.

While there’s little doubt crypto investors will be in a giddy mood the next time they gather in Miami and other locales, investment pros are adding a more serious and sober vibe to the conference circuit.

“I’ll certainly be avoiding the partying conferences because realistically there are no institutional investors, it’s nearly all retail,” said Anatoly Crachilov, chief executive of crypto hedge fund Nickel Digital Asset Management and a former executive director at Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan.

“If anything, I want to take this industry away from the unnecessary flashiness,” he said. “Instead, let’s talk portfolio construction, risk limits, and proper allocation within a larger portfolio. That’s what I’m interested in.”

Crypto events carry outsized importance in the sector, partly because an unusually high number of participants work remotely.

Big gatherings provide a rare opportunity to network and talk to people in-person and often draw tens-of-thousands of attendees. As a result, the confabs become more than gatherings — they are also barometers on the mood in the market.

Last year was a mixed bag for conference regulars, as the bear market hit company balance sheets and caused a pullback in events spending in large swathes of the sector.

Mass market appeal

Bitcoin Miami saw attendance halve to about 15,000 people, CoinDesk reported. Meanwhile, attendance at NFT.NYC, the New York-centred non-fungible token bonanza, dropped almost two-thirds, to 6,000.

With the market soaring, the vibe has changed. The biggest difference may be how the crypto community has accepted regulation as the necessary price for mass market appeal.

Regulators in the UK and the European Union are adopting regulatory rulebooks to clarify the do’s and don’ts for crypto firms.

And ironically enough it was the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the industry’s scourge, that helped usher in the current boom by approving spot Bitcoin ETFs for BlackRock, Fidelity, and nine other issuers in January. Ethereum ETFs may be next.

Now events – and companies’ sponsorship budgets which fund them – are bouncing back, too.

‘In 2023 people were very cautious, but we are seeing more companies who want to get out there and market themselves more loudly.’

—  Emma Joyce, Global Blockchain Business Council

Cal Evans, managing associate at crypto law and compliance consultancy Gresham International, said that his firm has increased its marketing budget by 25% in 2024 compared to the previous year. The money goes towards both event sponsorship and digital advertising.

Emma Joyce, head of financial services at Europe-focused industry group the Global Blockchain Business Council, said the organisation put on 132 conferences, roundtables, webinars and dinners in 2023. This year, that number is expected to rise by about 10%.

“In 2023, people were very cautious, but we are seeing more companies who want to get out there and market themselves more loudly,” she said. “Companies are still being sensible, but there is definitely more room for spending across the industry.”

And Simon Barnby, chief marketing officer at Archax, a digital asset firm backed by fund management giant Abrdn, said the firm is increasing its sponsorship budget by as much as one third this year.

That is “partly because we’ve gone into sales mode on our product, and partly because of improving market conditions. They make us feel confident to spend a little bit more on events.”

He added that even in November, people were scrambling for places at Token 2049′s flagship Singapore conference, as hype grew over the SEC’s expected approval of Bitcoin ETFs.

Coming together

But as Wall Street’s influence looms ever larger on the industry, the recovery is coinciding with a growing appetite for more straight-laced gatherings aimed at institutional investors like BlackRock’s.

Joyce moderated a blockchain panel at the European Parliament with speakers from the Bank of England, JP Morgan Chase and German stock exchange Deutsche Boerse earlier this month.

“You need companies, policymakers and regulators all coming together to determine the future of this industry and that’s what the good conferences are able to do,” Joyce said.

‘I’m glad BlackRock has launched its own summit. It would not have done that in the last cycle, but this is a great sign.’

—  Anatoly Crachilov, Nickel Digital Asset Management

Crachilov, meanwhile, cites TradeTech’s DigiAssets conference, which is aimed at asset managers and hedge funds, and iConnections’ Global Alts conference in Miami, which matches asset managers with allocators, as key gatherings for him.

“If I’m travelling for two days, I want to have meetings pre-agreed with people who actually want to discuss the same thing as me,” he said. “That’s what is most valuable.”

“I’m glad BlackRock has launched its own summit. It would not have done that in the last cycle, but this is a great sign. They are in a good position to bring investors together and have institutional quality conversations about crypto.”

Alarm bells

Archax’s Barnby agrees that for institutional players, the biggest, flashiest conferences have limited value. There is even the potential for a clash with finance firms’ compliance departments.

“A lot of these companies are heavily regulated, so they have to be very careful about what they do and where they go,” he said.

“They don’t want to be seen getting involved in frivolous things, whereas if it’s a bit more focused and serious it’s easier to get past compliance,” he continued.

“Sure, the big events are a huge amount of fun. But they ring alarm bells at regulated institutions.”

Alex Daniel is a contributing writer to DL News.